83
Give or take: more vague expressions The words and phrases in this unit are mostly for informal conversation, except where indicated, and may sound inappropriate in more formal contexts.
A
Vague expressions for numbers and quantities He left a sum in excess of $1 million when he died. [more than; used in more formal contexts] It’ll cost you somewhere in the region of £900 a month to rent a flat. [less formal = around/about £900] It’ll take five hours, give or take half an hour, to drive there. [could take 4.5 or 5.5 hours; informal] The second meeting is approximately two and a half months after the first one. [could be between 9 and 11 weeks.; rather formal]
It’ll take a week or so to get the computer repaired. [more than a week, but unclear how much more;
informal]
Quite a few students hadn’t registered. [a surprisingly or undesirably large number] There was only a smattering of women authors among the prize winners. [small proportion] Would you like a dash/smidgen of chilli sauce with your kebab? [very small quantity] I’d like a dollop of ice cream with my fruit salad. [usually a small amount; however, we can also say a
large dollop]
I used to have stacks of CDs with my files on, but now I have them all on one memory stick. [a large number or quantity of; informal]
B
Making things less precise in informal conversation More or less is often used with verbs and adverbs to make things more vague: I think we’ve more or less solved the problem with the computer now. My English is more or less the same level as the other students in the class. A bit and a bit of a are used with adjectives and nouns to soften the meaning: I’m a bit fed up with all the complaints I’m getting. We were in a bit of a panic when we heard there was a strike at the airport. Or whatever, or something, things like that and that kind of thing are useful expressions for referring vaguely to things and actions: You could work on Saturday, then spend Sunday going to museums or galleries or whatever. [or similar activities]
If you don’t want tea, have a lemonade or something. [any other kind of drink you want] In the evenings we played board games and things like that / and that kind of thing. [different kinds of entertaining activities]
We need a big container made of plastic; a dustbin or something along those lines would do. [something fitting that description]
He said he was fed up with all the attacks and criticisms, or words to that effect. [or similar words expressing the same meaning]
Common mistakes We do not usually use more or less with people’s ages: He’s about 35 (NOT He’s more or less 35).
172
English Vocabulary in Use Advanced
